Collaborative bidding in sealed online ad auctions

ABSTRACT

Certain embodiments herein relate to implementing collaborative bidding in online auctions. A determination may be made whether bidding entities, or bids associated with bidding entities, share promotional interests, such as promoting the same product. Bids submitted by bidding entities that share the same promotional interests may be combined to create a single, combined bid that may compete against other bids in an online auction. Costs associated with promoting the product may be allocated among such bidding entities in various ways, including proportional allocation of cost based on a bid price submitted by the bidding entity.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is a division of U.S. Nonprovisional application Ser.No. 15/437,372 filed Feb. 20, 2017, which is a division of U.S.Nonprovisional application Ser. No. 13/664,163 filed Oct. 30, 2012, theentire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

Various entities may compete for an opportunity to present ads on webpages or other information resources by submitting bids in an auctionfor such opportunities. Conventional auction systems may pit individualbids against one another to determine a winning bid. Unfortunately, suchsystems may not support collaboration between bidding entities thatshare promotional interests, such as an interest in promoting the sameproduct. As a result, a bidding entity may miss opportunities to promotea product or interest shared with other bidding entities at a reducedcost through collaboration with certain other bidding entities.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The detailed description is set forth with reference to the accompanyingfigures. In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference numberidentifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. Theuse of the same reference numbers in different figures indicates similaror identical items.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example computing environment for implementingcollaborative bidding, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic diagram of an example process forcombining bid prices to facilitate collaborative bidding, according toan embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 illustrates a diagram for allocating costs among collaborativebidding entities, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates a flow diagram of an example process for implementingcollaborative bidding, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 5 illustrates a flow diagram of an example process for sharing bidprices and costs among multiple bidding entities, according to anembodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flow diagram of an example process for implementingcollaborative bidding in real time, according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

Certain implementations will now be described more fully below withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which various implementationsand/or aspects are shown. However, various aspects may be implemented inmany different forms and should not be construed as limited to theimplementations set forth herein; rather, these implementations areprovided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and willfully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art.Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Illustrative embodiments herein are directed to, among other things,implementing collaborative bidding in an online auction. Collaborativebidding may refer to the process of enabling interested persons and/orentities to collaborate or work together to win an auction for ad spacein which the interested persons and/or entities may display an ad. Suchcollaboration may be effectuated by combining respective bids from andassociated with each of the interested persons and/or entities. Thus,certain embodiments herein can relate to facilitating collaborationbetween bidding entities that share the same promotional interest, suchas by promoting the same product. Such bidding entities may submitindividual bids for ad space along with other bidding entities that maynot share the same promotional interest. For example, one bidding entitymay be a publisher of a compact disc (CD) interested in promoting theCD, another bidding entity may be the author of the CD, and yet anotherbidding entity may be a seller of the CD. Other bidding entities,however, may not be interested in promoting the same CD but may insteadbe interested in promoting a different CD associated with a differentartist or a different publisher.

Certain embodiments herein can relate to combining bids that promote thesame product, service, interests, etc. (generally referred to herein asproducts) to make the combined bids more competitive against othercompeting bids in an auction. Combining bids to increase competitivenessamong competing bids may include summing, averaging, etc., bid pricesfor any number of bids that promote the same product, or that aresubmitted for an opportunity to advertise the same product. For example,the summed bid prices may represent an individual bid price that may becompared to one or more competing bid prices to determine a winning bid.In any instance, costs may be allocated among bidding entities thatshare promotional interests (e.g., by virtue of the bidding entitiessubmitting bids that promote the same product) using various approachessuch that cost of promoting products may be shared among such biddingentities.

One use case example of combining bids that promote the same product maybe as follows. The publisher, the author, and the seller of the CDmentioned above may each submit a bid of $0.60, $0.50 and $0.20,respectively, for an opportunity to display an ad promoting the CD. Acompeting entity, or an entity not promoting the CD, may submit a bidprice of $0.80. In one embodiment, a user interested in purchasing theCD may enter (e.g., via a web browser or dedicated application) searchcriteria to identify the CD. A determination may be made whether bidsassociated with the publisher, the seller, the author, and the competingentity are relevant to the search criteria and, if so, each of the bidsmay be included in an auction for the opportunity to present an ad tothe user. A further determination may be made whether each of the bidsare promoting the same product, e.g., the CD. Because the bidsassociated with the publisher, the seller, and the author are eachpromoting the CD, according to the present example, a combined bid priceof $1.20 (i.e., $0.60+$0.40+$0.20) may be included in the auction tocompete against the $0.80 bid price. Thus, the combined bid price of$1.20, submitted on behalf of the publisher, the seller, and the author,may win the auction by virtue of the combined bid price of $1.20 beinggreater than the $0.80 bid price submitted by the competing entity.

In one embodiment, costs associated with winning the auction may beshared amongst the publisher, the seller, and the author. For example,in a second price auction, the cost charged to the winning bidder may beapproximately equivalent to the bid price of the second place bidder.That is, the combined entity of the publisher, the seller, and theauthor may be charged a price equal to approximately the $0.80 bid pricesubmitted by the competing entity. In one embodiment, the costs may beallocated proportionally to the bid price submitted by the purchaser,the seller, and the author. For example, because the publisher submitteda bid price of $0.60, or 50% of the combined bid price of $1.20, costsin the amount of $0.40 may be allocated to the publisher (i.e., 50% ofthe second place bid price of $0.80). In another embodiment, a similardetermination may yield an amount of cost allocated to the seller andthe author.

Thus, by enabling bidding entities to collaborate in an auction, thebidding entities may win an opportunity to promote products that theymay not have won acting alone, as well as share costs associated withpromoting the products.

Furthermore, certain embodiments herein may relate to a sealed bidauction, in which bidding entities may be unaware of which bids may becollaborative or promoting the same interests as the bidding entity.

In any instance, various techniques described herein may implement orfacilitate the collaboration of bids in association with auctions. Bidsassociated with auctions may be referred to herein as multiple auctionbids.

FIG. 1 depicts an example computing environment for implementingcollaborative bidding, according to an embodiment of the disclosure. Asshown, the example computing environment may include, but is not limitedto, an ad exchange device 110, a third party device 140, and a userdevice 170. Although only one of each of these devices is shown, moremay exist in other embodiments. Each of the devices in FIG. 1 maycommunicate with one another over one or more networks 105. For example,the ad exchange device 110 may receive search criteria, such as one ormore keywords, from the user device 170 and may receive bids from one ormore third party devices 140, which may be associated with biddingentities. The ad exchange device 110 may use such received informationto determine whether bids may be combined, as will be described ingreater detail below.

The one or more networks 105 may include any number of wired or wirelessnetworks that can enable various computing devices in the examplecomputing environment 100 to communicate with one another. In otherembodiments, other networks, intranets, or combinations of differenttypes of networks may be used including, but not limited to, theInternet, intranets, cable networks, cellular networks, landline-basednetworks, or other communication mediums connecting multiple computingdevices to one another. Other embodiments may not involve a network andmay, for example, provide features on a single device or on devices thatare directly connected to one another, e.g., a third party bidder device140 may be directly connected to the ad exchange device 110.

Certain embodiments may be provided as a computer program productincluding a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium having storedthereon instructions (in compressed or uncompressed form) that may beused to program a computer (or other electronic device) to performprocesses or methods described herein. The machine-readable storagemedium may include, but is not limited to, hard drives, floppydiskettes, optical disks, CD-ROMs, DVDs, read-only memories (ROMs),random access memories (RAMs), EPROMs, EEPROMs, flash memory, magneticor optical cards, solid-state memory devices, or other types ofmedia/machine-readable media suitable for storing electronicinstructions. Further, embodiments may also be provided as a computerprogram product including a transitory machine-readable signal (incompressed or uncompressed form). Examples of machine-readable signals,whether modulated using a carrier or not, include, but are not limitedto, signals that a computer system or machine hosting or running acomputer program may be configured to access, including signalsdownloaded through the Internet or other networks. For example,distribution of software may be downloaded via the Internet.

As used herein, “ad space” may refer generally to a location, anenvironment, or a placeholder that may store and/or serve adimpressions. In one example, ad space may refer to a particular locationon a web page in which an ad impression may be presented for viewingand/or interaction by a user. In one embodiment, a particular locationof ad space may be referred to as a “buy box,” or the most prominentlocation on a web page or other information resource for presenting anad.

References to the term “product” herein are not meant to excludeservices or other intangible items. As a non-limiting example, certainembodiments herein refer to determining whether a bid promotes the sameproduct. The term “product” in this sense may also include a service,concept, a combination of any number of services and/or goods, oranything that may be advertised and/or purchased by a user. Similarly,the term “product ads” as used herein is not meant to be limited to adsfor products but may also include ads for services, concepts, etc.

As used herein, the term “device” may refer to any computing componentthat includes one or more processors that can be configured to executecomputer-readable, computer-implemented, or computer-executableinstructions. Example devices can include personal computers, servercomputers, server farms, digital assistants, smart phones, personaldigital assistants, digital tablets, Internet appliances,application-specific circuits, microcontrollers, minicomputers,transceivers, or customer premise equipment such as set-top boxes,kiosks, or other processor-based devices. The execution of suitablecomputer-implemented instructions by one or more processors associatedwith various devices may form special purpose computers or otherparticular machines that may implement or facilitate collaborativebidding as described herein.

The devices in FIG. 1 may include one or more processors configured tocommunicate with one or more memory devices and various other componentsor devices. For example, the ad exchange device 110 may include one ormore processors 112 that are configured to communicate with one or morememory or memory devices 122, one or more input/output (I/O) devices114, storage 116, one or more communication connections 118, and one ormore data stores 120. The processor 112 may be implemented asappropriate in hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof.The processors 142 and 172 associated with the third party device 140and the user device 170, respectively, may be the same or at leastsimilar to the processor 112, in one embodiment.

The memory 122 may store program instructions that are loadable andexecutable on the processor 112, as well as data generated during theexecution of these programs. Depending on the configuration and type ofad exchange device 110, the memory 122 may be volatile, such as randomaccess memory (RAM), and/or non-volatile, such as read-only memory(ROM), flash memory, etc. The memory 122 and 174 associated with thethird party device 140 and the user device 170, respectively, may be thesame or at least similar to the memory 122, in one embodiment.

The storage 116 may include removable and/or non-removable storageincluding, but not limited to, magnetic storage, optical disks, and/ortape storage. The disk drives and their associated computer-readablemedia may provide non-volatile storage of computer-readableinstructions, data structures, program modules, and other data for thecomputing devices. The storage 146 associated with the third partydevice 140 may be the same or at least similar to the storage device116, in one embodiment. In some implementations, the memory 122 mayinclude multiple different types of memory, such as static random accessmemory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), or ROM.

The memory 122 and the storage 116, both removable and non-removable,are all examples of computer-readable storage media. For example,computer-readable storage media may include volatile and non-volatile,removable and non-removable media implemented in any method ortechnology for storage of information such as computer-readableinstructions, data structures, program modules, or other data.

The one or more communication connections 118 may allow the ad exchangedevice 110 to communicate with other devices, such as the third partydevices 140 and the user devices 170, databases, user terminals, andvarious other devices that may exist on the one or more networks 105. Inone embodiment, the communication connections 148 associated with thethird party device 140 may be the same or at least similar to thecommunication connections 118.

The I/O devices 114 may enable a user to interact with the ad exchangedevice 110 to, for example, submit keyword search terms to identifyproducts for purchase, according to one example. Such I/O devices 114may include, but are not limited to, a keyboard, a mouse, a pen, a voiceinput device, a touch input device, a display, a camera or imagingdevice, speakers, or a printer. The I/O devices 144 associated with thethird party device 140 may be the same or at least similar to the I/Odevices 114, in one embodiment.

The one or more data stores 120 may store lists, arrays, databases, flatfiles, etc. In some implementations, the data stores 120 may be storedin memory external to the ad exchange device 110 but may be accessiblevia the one or more networks 105, such as with a cloud storage service.The data stores 120 may store information that may facilitatecollaborative bidding as described herein. Such information may include,but is not limited to, ads and associated data that may be used to servead impressions, as well as rules or other information that mayfacilitate the implementation of collaborative bidding as describedherein. The data store 150 associated with the third party device 140may be the same or at least similar to the data store 120, in oneembodiment.

The memory 122 may also store an operating system (O/S) 124 and varioussoftware applications and/or modules that may implement or facilitatecollaborative bidding. Example modules may include, but are not limitedto, a rules user interface (UI) module 128, an auction module 130, andone or more collaboration modules 132. Each of these modules may beimplemented as individual modules that provide specific functionalityassociated with implementing collaborative bidding. Alternatively, oneor more of the modules may perform all or at least some of thefunctionality associated with the other modules.

The rules UI module 128 may provide a user interface that enables a userassociated with a bidding entity, such as a third party device 140, toconfigure collaborative bidding parameters for bids submitted by thebidding entity. Such parameters may include certain rules or preferencesthat may determine whether bids may be combined with other bids (i.e.,are combinable) and, if so, circumstances or conditions by which thebids may be combined, as non-limiting examples of possible rules orpreferences. As an example, a user may utilize the rules UI module 128to specify whether, or according to which circumstances, a bidassociated with a bidding entity may be combined with bids associatedwith other bidding entities having a similar promotional interest or,for example, that promotes the same product. As another example, rulesmay be established via the rules UI module 128 such that a bid may onlybe combined with another bid promoting the same product if one of thebids promoting the same product is currently winning the most prominentlocation for an ad on a web page, e.g., the buy box, as described above.

As another example, a user may utilize the rules UI module 128 tospecify a list of products desired to be promoted by a bid. The user mayfurther specify certain criteria, such as a particular brand of theproducts and/or a price range associated with the products that, if met,may trigger the submission of a bid associated with one or more of theproducts. In one embodiment, the collaboration module 132 may providethe determination and submission of such bids. Additional examples mayinclude, but are not limited to, establishing rules such that a bid mayonly be combined with bids associated with certain bidding entities, andpermitting the combination of bids up to a predetermined threshold bidprice.

The above examples of implementing rules to configure the collaborationof bids submitted by various entities are not meant to be limiting. Inother examples, any number of criteria may be specified via the rules UImodule 128 to enable specialized configuration of bid collaboration fora bidding entity, e.g., a third party device 140, to tailor thecollaborative bidding process for a particular bidding entity or bid.

The auction module 130 may perform various functions associated withconducting an online auction to determine a winning bid. In oneembodiment, such an auction may be performed by a real-time bidded (RTB)exchange, in which a winning bid may be determined within about 50milliseconds (ms) to about 100 ms. Certain embodiments herein may bedirected to a second price auction, in which the cost associated with asecond place bidding entity may be used to determine cost for thewinning bidding entity. Allocation of “second price” costs to thewinning bidding entities will be discussed in greater detail below.

The auction module 130 may further facilitate communication with variousbidding entities, such as the third party devices 140. For example, theauction module 130 may configure the ad exchange device 110 to receivebids, as well as various information accompanying bids (as will bedescribed in greater detail below), from the third party devices 140.Various protocols may be utilized by the auction module 140 tofacilitate such communication. Examples of such protocols may include,but are not limited to, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), TransmissionControl Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), socket-based protocols suchas the WebSocket protocol, or other message formats and/or rules forexchanging information between computing devices to supportcommunication between web-based program code and client-server-basedprogram code, as examples. In another embodiment, the auction module 130may include one or more application programming interfaces (APIs) thatmay utilize such protocols, or other program code or techniques that mayconfigure the ad exchange device 110 to communicate with the devicesshown in FIG. 1.

The collaboration module 132 may perform functions that enable bids tobe combined, or put another way, may perform functions that enablebidding entities to share promotional interests. In one embodiment, thecollaboration module 132 may include one or more modules that mayperform specific functionality associated with implementingcollaborative bidding as described herein. Such modules may include, butare not limited to, a promotional identification module 134, a bid pricecalculation module 136, and a cost allocation module 138. In addition tothese modules, which will be described in turn below, the collaborationmodule may perform functions to facilitate the processes describedherein.

For example, the collaboration module 132 may identify informationaccompanying bids submitted by bidding entities, such as the third partydevices 140. Such information may include a bid price, targetingpreferences, and information associated with a product that the bidpromotes, among other information. The bid price may indicate a pricethat a bidding entity is willing to pay for ad space for promoting theproduct associated with the bid or, put another way, for displaying anad associated with a product in the ad space.

The targeting preferences may indicate criteria or conditions that, whenmet, may trigger a submission of a bid for ad space. According tocertain embodiments herein, targeting preferences may include adescription or one or more keywords, at least a portion of which whenentered by a user searching for product ads may trigger the submissionof the bid. For example, a targeting preference associated with a bidmay include the description “50 Shades of Grey.” When a user enters atleast a portion of the term “50 Shades of Grey” (e.g., “50 Shades”) intoa web browser user interface, for example, a bid associated with theexample targeting preference may be submitted. A more detaileddescription of the above example will be provided in association withFIG. 2. Target preferences that are based on criteria other than keywordsearches may exist in other embodiments.

As mentioned, bid information may also include information associatedwith a product (“product information”) that is promoted by the bid. Suchinformation may include, but is not limited to, content associated witha product, such as an ad for a product that may be displayed on a webpage or other information resource. The information may also include adescription and/or identification of a product associated with the bid.Such a description may be in text format or another format that mayfacilitate comparison of the description to other product descriptionsto determine whether a match exists between the descriptions. In oneembodiment, product information may also include a hyperlink or otherreference that corresponds to a Uniform Resource Locator (URL)associated with a website. According to one example, when a bid isdetermined to be a winning bid, an ad for a product associated with thewinning bid may be retrieved via the reference.

A product may refer to an item, service, offer, any combination thereof,etc., that is sought to be promoted by a bidding entity. According tothe above example in which the targeting preferences associated with abid include the description “50 Shades of Grey,” a product associatedwith the bid may be the book “50 Shades of Grey.” Other example productsmay include a poster, a T-shirt, other tangible items displaying thetitle, author, etc., of “50 Shades of Grey.” Services may also bepromoted in addition to products. For example, an opportunity to attenda forum conducted by the author of the book at a discount may also bepromoted.

The promotional identification module 134 may identify bids that share acommon promotional interest with one another, such as by promoting thesame product. Bids prices associated with bids that share a commonpromotional interest with one another may be combined into a single bidprice that may represent each of the bids, in certain embodimentsherein. Whether bids share a common promotional interest may bedetermined by analyzing at least one of the targeting preferences and/orthe product information associated with a bid. In one embodiment,targeting preferences may be analyzed to identify at least a portion oftext in the targeting preferences that matches or overlaps searchcriteria entered by a user. If such a match exists, then the promotionalidentification module 134 may compare product information, such as adescription of a product, with the same for other bids that match theuser's search criteria to determine whether the bids promote the sameproduct, in one embodiment. If the bids each promote the same product,then it may be determined that the bids share a common interest, in oneembodiment.

In some embodiments, a determination of which bids may collaborate withone another based on their product promotions may be determined prior toreceiving search criteria from a user. In one embodiment, thepromotional identification module 134 may analyze product informationassociated with bids to determine whether the bids promote the sameproduct, for example. The text accompanying the identification ordescription for each bid may be analyzed to determine whether it matchesthe text, or at least a portion of the text, associated with other bids.If a match exists, bids associated with the matching descriptions may becombined.

Various techniques may be utilized to determine whether a match existsbetween targeting preferences, product descriptions, or other text. Suchtechniques may include one or more regular expressions or other patternmatching tools or techniques.

The bid price calculation module 136 may calculate a combined bid pricefor bids that have been determined to share a common promotionalinterest, e.g., promote the same product. Various mathematicalcomputations may be utilized to calculate the bid price. For example, abid price may be combined using summation, in which each individual bidprice is summed to arrive at a single bid price. Bid prices may beaveraged in other examples. As another example, a weight function may beutilized such that certain bids may receive more or less weight orinfluence on bid price than other bids with which they are combined.Various other mathematical techniques may be applied in otherembodiments.

A cost allocation module 138 may determine an amount of cost associatedwith each bid for which a combined bid was submitted. The cost may beallocated across bidding entities associated with the combined bidsusing various techniques. In one example, the cost allocation may beproportional to the bid amount for each bidding entity. Thus, a biddingentity that bids an amount that is two-thirds the total bid amount, forexample, may be allocated a cost of two-thirds the cost associated withwinning an auction for ad space. In another example, a weight functionmay be utilized to assign more or less of the cost to one or morebidding entities based on various considerations, such as prior bidamounts submitted by the bidding entity. For example, cost may beallocated based on a historical average of bid prices for biddingentities, or historical costs allocated to a bidding entity. Allocationsbased on historical averages or behavior may facilitate a more steadycost allocation and may, for example, reduce the impact of bids placedby a bidding entity that are substantially higher or lower thantraditionally submitted. Numerous other examples and/or considerationsto determine cost allocation may exist in other embodiments.

The one or more third party devices 140 may submit bids to the adexchange device 110. In conjunction with submitting bids to the adexchange device 110, the identity of a bidding entity may be received bythe exchange device 110. The identity may be utilized to associate thebidding entity with a bid received from the third party deviceassociated with the bidding entity. The third party devices 140 may beassociated with various types of entities, such as sellers, brandowners, publishers, store managers, originators or creators of productsor services, or numerous other entities that may or may not share acommon promotional interest with other entities, such as may beexhibited by the entities promoting a certain product or service.

One or more third party modules 154 may facilitate the submission for athird party device 140. For example, a third party module 154 mayinclude an API or other communication program module that may configurea third party device to submit information to the ad exchange device110, in one embodiment. The third party module 154 may further ensurethat information required for submitting a bid is provided, such as abid price, targeting preferences, and an identification and/ordescription of a product that the third party device 140 submitting thebid is promoting. In one embodiment, the ad exchange device 110, e.g.,via the auction module 130, may verify the necessary information toparticipate in an auction has been provided.

In addition to bid information, a third party module 154 may also sendads to the ad exchange device 110. In one embodiment, the ad exchangedevice 110 may present such ads in the event that a third party biddingdevice wins an auction. In other embodiments, the third party module 154may provide a URL or other reference that may indicate a location, e.g.,the storage 146, at which an ad may be identified and presented in adspace in association with a third party bidding device winning a bid forthe ad space.

A third party module 154 may also include a web browser application or adedicated application that may enable a user utilizing a third partydevice 140 to specify rules and/or preferences for participating in anauction. As described above, such rules may govern whether, or underwhich circumstances, a bid associated with the third party device 140may be combined with other bids.

Various user devices, such as a laptop or smart phone, may be utilizedby users 102 to communicate with an ad exchange device 110, as well asother devices. The user device 170 may include a memory 174 that mayinclude one or more user applications 176, such as a web browser or adedicated application. The web browser or dedicated application mayoutput a web page 180, for example, on the display 178. The web page 180may include content 182, such as text, audio, video, multimedia, data,or other information that may be presented to a user 102. The web page180 may further include a search box 184 into which keywords or searchtext may be entered to identify ads for products corresponding to thekeywords or search text. The ad exchange device 110 may receive thekeywords, identify ads for products matching the keywords, and performan auction to determine which ads may be presented in an ad space 186within the web page 180. The user device 170 may receive the results ofthe search, which may include an ad for presentation in the ad space186. In one embodiment, the ad space 186 may represent the mostprominent location on the web page 180 for presenting an ad.

The configurations illustrated in FIG. 1 are not meant to be limiting.The functionality described in FIG. 1, for example, may be performed byfewer or more devices. For example, the functionality provided by theuser device 170 may be performed by the third party device 140, in oneembodiment.

FIG. 2 depicts a schematic diagram of an example process for combiningbid prices to facilitate collaborative bidding, according to anembodiment of the disclosure. In a particular example, bids promoting aparticular brand of athletic shoes (e.g., the Brand X athletic shoes)may be combined and submitted as a single bid (e.g., bid price)representing the bids. While a particular search term is illustrated inFIG. 2, many other search terms may exist in other embodiments.

In FIG. 2, an ad exchange device, similar to 110 in FIG. 1, may performcertain functions related to collaborating bids and implementing anauction to determine a winning bid, among other functions. FIG. 2illustrates an example auction scenario 200 with at least four bids: bid220, bid 222, bid 224, and bid 226. Each of these bids may have beensubmitted by a respective bidding entity. For example, bid 220 may havebeen submitted by a seller, bid 222 may have been submitted by amanufacturer, bid 224 may have been submitted by a brand owner, and bid226 may have been submitted by another seller. Although four bids areshown, fewer or more may exist in other examples.

As described, information associated with each bid may be analyzed todetermine whether bids have a common promotional interest, such as aninterest in promoting the same product. The information associated witheach bid may be identified or parsed (e.g., by the collaboration module130) and stored in the storage 116 in FIG. 1, or another storagelocation accessible locally to the ad exchange device 110 or accessiblevia the one or more networks 105.

As shown in FIG. 2, information associated with the bid 220 indicatesthat the seller may be interested in submitting bid 220, for a price of$0.50, when the search term “Brand X” appears in a search, e.g., inwhole or as a subset of another term. The product that the seller 220 isinterested in promoting, as indicated in the product information field,is Brand X athletic shoes.

Information associated with the bid 222 indicates that the manufacturermay be interested in submitting bid 222, for a price of $0.25, when thesearch term “athletic shoes” appears in a search string. The productthat the manufacturer is interested in promoting may also be the Brand Xathletic shoes, as indicated by the product information field.

Information associated with the bid 224 indicates that the brand ownermay be interested in submitting bid 224, for a price of $0.10, when thesearch term “Brand X” appears in a search string. The product that themanufacturer is interested in promoting may be all products associatedwith Brand X, as indicated by a specification of “all” in the productinformation field. For example, in addition to Brand X athletic shoes,the brand owner may be interested in submitting a bid on T-shirts, otherclothing, accessories, etc., associated with Brand X. In addition toproducts, the brand owner may submit a bid for services associated withBrand X, such as athletic camps that have endorsed Brand X, or seminarsat which athletes who wear Brand X shoes, clothing, etc., may attend, asnon-limiting examples. In one embodiment, a specific list of productsthat the brand owner is interested in promoting may also be provided.When any of such products is specified in search criteria, for example,a bid may be submitted to display an ad associated with the particularproduct.

Information associated with the bid 226 indicates that another sellermay be interested in submitting bid 226, for a price of $0.65, when thesearch term “athletic shoes” appears in a search string. The productthat the additional seller is interested in promoting may be aparticular brand of athletic shoes, such as Brand A. Because Brand X isnot being promoted by the additional seller, bid 226 may not beconsidered collaborative with bids 220, 222, and 224, as will bedescribed in greater detail below.

Each of the bids may also include rules information that may determinewhether they may be combined with other bids and, if so, the terms ofsuch collaborations. Such information may be stored in the storage 146in FIG. 1, or another storage device that is accessible by the adexchange device 110. As described, a rules user interface module 128 maybe utilized by the sellers, for example, to specify certain rulesregarding collaboration of bids submitted by the sellers. Some biddingentities, for example, may not desire to have their bids combined withcertain other entities. As another example, some bidding entities mayonly want to collaborate with other bidding entities in association withbidding on the most prominent location on a web page, e.g., the web page180 in FIG. 1. Numerous other rules may exist for each bidding entity inassociation with bids submitted by the bidding entity, in otherexamples. For purposes of illustration, it is assumed that no rules havebeen implemented to restrict the combination of bids in the presentexample.

As mentioned above, the auction scenario 200 may be implemented by an adexchange device, such as the ad exchange device 110 in FIG. 1. The adexchange device 110 may have received the bids 220, 222, 224, and 226,including the bid price, targeting preferences, and product informationfor each of the bids. The ad exchange device 110 may includefunctionality to implement collaboration of bids (e.g., via thecollaboration modules 132) and an auction (e.g., via the auction module130), among other functions.

Collaboration of bids may be determined based on various information.For example, in one embodiment, product information associated with bidsmay be analyzed to determine whether the bids are directed to the sameproduct. Bids 220 and 222, for example, both indicate an interest inpromoting the “Brand X athletic shoes” product, as shown in FIG. 2.Further, bid 224 is directed to any products associated with Brand X,and therefore, may be considered to promote the Brand X athletic shoes.Bid 226, however, may not promote Brand X products, but may insteadpromote products associated with brand Brand A, which may be a brandthat competes with Brand X. Thus, based on product informationassociated with the bids shown in FIG. 2, bids 220, 222, and 224 may becombined with one another (because each of them are promoting the BrandX athletic shoes) (as illustrated by dotted line 215), while bid 226 maynot be combined with these bids because bid 226 is promoting differentbrands of athletic shoes. Thus, a single bid price of $0.85 (e.g.,$0.50+$0.25+$0.10) may be submitted in an auction for the combination ofbid prices for bids 220, 222, and 224, respectively. In one embodiment,the combination of bids based on product information may be performedindependent of a search term entered by a user, for example, which maytrigger an auction to determine an ad for displaying products identifiedby the search term.

According to another example, bids may be collaborated based on searchterms that may be received by the ad exchange device 200 from a userutilizing a user device, such as the user device 170 in FIG. 1. In thepresent example, the search term “Brand X athletic shoes” may bereceived. The ad exchange device 110, e.g., via the promotionalidentification module 134, may determine whether at least a portion ofthe targeting preferences associated with the bids 220, 222, 224, and226 match the search term. A match may indicate that a bidding entitysubmitting the bid desires to participate in an auction for anopportunity to present an ad to the user who is searching for “Brand Xathletic shoes.” Pattern matching using regular expressions or othertechniques may be utilized to determine whether a match exists, incertain embodiments.

In the present example, targeting preferences for each of the bids 220,222, 224, and 226 contains overlapping text with the search term, e.g.,“Brand X” (as indicated in bids 220 and 224) matches a portion of “BrandX athletic shoes,” and “athletic shoes” (as indicated in bids 222 and226) matches a portion of “Brand X athletic shoes.” Thus, each of thebids in FIG. 2 may be submitted in an auction in response to a userentering the specified search term. Other bids (not shown) that do notinclude at least a portion of the “Brand X athletic shoes” search termin their targeting preferences may not be included in the auction.

After identifying bids whose targeting preferences are associated withthe user's search term, bids may be further analyzed to determinewhether they are promoting the same product, according to oneembodiment. For example, bids 220 and 222 both indicate that theypromote Brand X athletic shoes. Therefore, the bids 220 and 222 may becombined to create a total bid price of $0.75 (e.g., $0.50+$0.25).Further, bid 224, which promotes all Brand X products, including Brand Xathletic shoes, may also be combined with bids 220 and 222 to create atotal bid price of $0.85 (e.g., $0.50+$0.25+$0.10). In this example, bid224 may include a product listing for “Brand X athletic shoes,” whichmay be determined to match the same product listing associated with bids220 and 222. Bid 226, however, which promotes a product other than BrandX, may not be combined with bids 220, 222, and 224, but may be submittedin an auction as a competing bid against the combined $0.85 bid pricefor the bids 220, 222, and 224.

In some embodiments, promotional interests as identified by bidinformation may be analyzed to determine whether sufficient overlap inpromotional interest exists. In the present example, such interest maybe clear because bid 220 and 222 indicate an interest in the sameproduct, while bid 226 indicates an interest in all products for aparticular brand, which may also clearly indicate an interest inpromoting the Brand X athletic shoes. In a further example, amanufacturer of shoe laces may submit a bid (not shown) when a user'ssearch term includes the search term “athletic shoes.” The shoe lacemanufacturer's product description, however, may indicate a particularmodel of its shoe laces instead of the Brand X athletic shoe. In oneembodiment, the shoe lace manufacturer's bid may not be combined withthe bids associated with the Brand X athletic shoes because the shoelaces do not match the “Brand X athletic shoes” product listingassociated with bids 220, 222, and 224, in the present example.

In other embodiments, however, the ad exchange device 200, e.g., via thecollaboration module 132, may determine whether an association existsbetween the shoe laces and the Brand X athletic shoes. If such anassociation exists, the shoe laces bid may be combined with the combinedbid for the Brand X athletic shoes. Various criteria may be analyzed todetermine whether an association exists. For example, productspecifications for the Brand X athletic shoes may indicate that the shoelace manufacturer's laces are used in the Brand X athletic shoes. Otherinformation that may indicate that the shoe laces are a component, asubset, or otherwise associated with the Brand X athletic shoes may alsobe analyzed to draw an association between the Brand X athletic shoesand the shoe laces. Barring any rules to the contrary, a bid for theshoe laces manufacturer may be combined with the combined bid for theBrand X athletic shoes if an association between the two products isdetermined, according to one embodiment.

An auction may be performed, e.g., by the auction module 130 in FIG. 1,to determine a winning bid. In the present example, excluding the shoelaces bid, the combined bid price of $0.85 representing the summation ofbid prices for bids 220, 222, and 224 may be compared to the $0.65 bidprice associated with bid 226. The bid price of $0.85, being the highestbid price, may be identified as the winning bid, in one embodiment.Thus, by virtue of combining bids 220, 222, and 224, neither of whichalone is greater than the $0.65 bid price associated with bid 226,collaborative bidding may be enabled for the seller, the manufacturer,and the brand owner associated with bids 220, 222, and 224,respectively, to facilitate displaying a product ad in ad space viewedby the user who entered the search for the Brand X athletic shoes.Although summation is used to combine bid prices in the above examples,other examples may use other mathematical operations, such as anaverage, weighted average, etc., to determine a combined bid price.

In some embodiments, collaboration may also be implemented for bidsassociated with various services. One use case example of combining bidsthat promote the same service may include combining bids directedtowards the same political campaign. For example, bids submitted bybidding entities that support a particular political candidate may becombined based on their shared interest in electing the same politicalcandidate. Such bids may include an identification or description of thecandidate in the product information portion of the bid. Uponidentifying matching product or service information among the bids, bidprices associated with the bids may be combined. Such combination may beaccording to one or more rules in the same or similar fashion to thatdescribed above for combining bids that promote the same product. Thecombined bid price supporting the same political candidate may besubmitted in an auction for ad space, where it may compete against otherbids, such as bids that promote one or more different politicalcandidates. Upon winning the ad space, one or more ads associated withthe political candidate may be displayed in the ad space, in the same orsimilar fashion to that described above.

The above examples are not meant to be limiting. Numerous other examplesand configurations may exist in other embodiments to facilitateimplementation of collaborative bidding. For example, bids associatedwith different products or services may be combined in other examples.Additionally, different search terms, product information, targetpreferences, etc., may exist in other examples. In yet other examples,collaborative bidding entities may be determined based on considerationsother than, or in addition to, keyword searches or comparisons ofinformation identifying which products are promoted by a bidding entityor a bid.

FIG. 3 depicts a scenario for allocating cost among collaborativebidding entities in response to winning an auction bid for ad space,according to an embodiment of the disclosure. Costs associated withsubmitting a winning bid in an auction may be allocated among thebidding entities that were determined to promote the same product, inone embodiment. For example, with reference to the bids illustrated inFIG. 2, the bid 220 submitted by the seller, bid 222 submitted by themanufacturer, and bid 224 submitted by the brand owner may have beencombined for a collaborative bid to display, on a web page 310, an ad ina particular ad space, such as 320. In one embodiment, a seller device350, a manufacturer device 360, and a brand owner device 370 may beassociated with the bids 220, 222, and 224, respectively. Each of thedevices 350, 360, 370 may be third party devices, e.g., third partydevices 140 illustrated in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 3, a Brand X athletic shoes ad 322 may be displayed inad space 320, which may represent a relatively prominent location on webpage 310, and which may include content 330 and a search entry box 340for receiving search criteria. In some embodiments, the ad 322 may bedisplayed at other, e.g., less prominent, locations on the web page 310,such as a portion of the web page 310 that may be viewed upon scrollingthe web page down. In some embodiments, different ads may be associatedwith each bidding entity for which collaborative bidding was performedto submit a winning bid. While each ad may refer to the same productdescription (e.g., “Brand X athletic shoes”), the ads may be differentin the way that the content, or the information about the ad, may vary.For example, an ad generated by the seller device 350 may provide animage of Brand X athletic shoes with the Brand X logo in relativelylarge, visible form. An ad generated by the brand owner device 360,however, may provide an image of the Brand X athletic shoes with a lessprominent logo, but may also have relatively large, visible text stating“Brand X athletic shoes.” Numerous other examples of ads may exist inother embodiments.

A determination of which ad to display in the ad space 322 may beperformed by the ad exchange device 110 in FIG. 1, e.g., via thecollaboration module 132. Such a determination may facilitate aselection of one or more ads associated with the bids 220, 222, and 224in FIG. 2. According to one example, if each of the ads associated withthe Brand X athletic shoes product is identical, then the identical admay be shown in the ad space 320. In other examples, multiple ads (e.g.,an ad for each of the bidding entities for which a bid was combined) maybe shown. In another example, an ad associated with a bid that iscurrently winning an auction in the process for ad space 320 may bedisplayed in the ad space 320 in the event that other bids are combinedwith the bid to win the ad space. Thus, according to this example, bidsmay be joined after an auction has begun. A rule may exist for a biddingentity that instructs the ad exchange device, e.g., the collaborationmodule 132, to identify ads having a similar promotional interest if anad associated with the bidding entity is no longer winning the mostprominent location on a web page, if the bidding entity desires tocollaborate with a bidding entity that is currently winning the mostprominent location and with which it shares promotional interests, orwhether no requirement exists regarding the most prominent location on aweb page (e.g., the bidding entity desires to combine with other biddingentities irrespective of which entity is currently winning the mostprominent location). Other rules regarding rules for collaborativebidding for bidding entities may exist in other embodiments.

In a further example, when bidding entities have different ads for thesame product, at least one of the ads associated with combined biddingentities may be displayed in the ad space 320 (e.g., the most prominentlocation on the web page 310), while the other ads may be displayed in aless prominent location, e.g., underneath the ad space 320 accessible bya user via interacting with a scroll bar. A determination of which ad isdisplayed in the ad space 320 may be based on a bid price associatedwith a bidding entity (e.g., the highest bidder may display its ad inthe ad space 320), a relationship between bidding entities, or othercriteria.

As described, costs associated with winning a bid for the ad space 320may be allocated among the seller device 350, the manufacturer device360, and the brand owner device 370, collaboration for each of which wasprovided to enable the devices to win an auction for the ad space 320.In the example described in FIG. 2, these bidding entities submitted acombined, winning bid of $0.85. Costs for the ad space 320 may vary. Oneembodiment may involve a second price auction, in which the winningbidding entity may be charged the price of the second place bid, e.g.,$0.65 submitted by the seller who submitted bid 226 in FIG. 2, plus anadditional $0.01 to yield $0.66. In some embodiments, factors inaddition to, or alternative to, the second place bid price may be usedto determine the price charged to the winning bidding entity. Suchfactors may include, but are not limited to, an expected click-throughrate (CTR), which may indicate an expected number of clicks that an admay receive, and hidden price floors, which may establish a minimumacceptable bid price.

In one embodiment, the amount of cost allocated to a bidding entity maybe proportionate to the bid price submitted by each entity. For example,the seller submitted a bid price of $0.50 with bid 220, which is about59% of the combined bid price of $0.85. The manufacturer submitted a bidprice of $0.25 with bid 222, which is about 29% of the combined bidprice of $0.85. The brand owner submitted a bid price of $0.10 with bid224, which is about 12% of the combined bid price of $0.85. Thus, in oneembodiment, costs may be allocated according to the 59%, 29%, and 12%bid price contributions associated with the seller, the manufacturer,and the brand owner, respectively. Applying such percentages accordingto second price auction costs may yield a cost allocation of about $0.39for the seller (e.g., 59%*$0.66), about $0.19 for the manufacturer(e.g., 29%*$0.66), and about $0.08 for the brand owner (e.g.,12%*$0.66). In this way, bidding entities who share a common interest,e.g., in promoting the same product, may share the expense associatedwith advertising to promote the interest or product.

Different mathematical calculations, techniques, or approaches inaddition to that described above may be used in other embodiments toallocate cost amongst collaborative bidding entities. For example, inone embodiment, a bidding entity that submitted the highest bid beforecollaboration may be charged the entire cost. Thus, in the presentexample, the seller who submitted bid 220 may be charged the entire costof $0.66, while the other bidding entities may not be allocated a cost.In other embodiments, costs may be shared equally, based on a weightedaverage that considers a number of factors, including historical bidprices, costs, etc., or based on various statistical analysistechniques, as non-limiting examples.

The above description in FIG. 3 is not meant to be limiting. Otherembodiments, for example, may not include a second price auction but mayinstead include an auction that determines cost differently. Otherembodiments may also include information resources other than a webpage, different numbers and types of bidding entities, etc.

FIG. 4 depicts a flow diagram of an example process for implementingcollaborative bidding, according to an embodiment of the disclosure. Inone embodiment, collaborative bidding may be performed by an ad exchangedevice 110. The example flow diagram may begin at block 402, where bidsmay be received from one or more bidding entities. Example biddingentities may include, but are not limited to, sellers, manufacturers,brand owners, publishers, or other entities or individuals who may beinterested in promoting a product or service. A bidding entity may beassociated with a device, such as a third party device 140 in FIG. 1,which may be utilized to send bids to an ad exchange device, among otherfunctions.

At block 404, at least a bid price, one or more targeting preferences,and product information may be identified in each of the received bids.The targeting preferences may indicate an instance in which a bidassociated with an ad should be submitted. For example, certain keywordsor search terms entered by a user may trigger submission of a bid, basedon the search terms matching the targeting preferences. Such searchterms may be received from a user operating a user device, such as 170,at block 406.

At block 408, an auction may be performed to determine a winning bid ofthe received bids. Turning to FIG. 5, a flow diagram of an exampleprocess 500 for combining bids that promote the same product isillustrated, according to an embodiment of the disclosure. The process500 may begin at block 502, where bids relevant to the search criteriaentered by a user (e.g., at block 406) may be identified based on acomparison of the search criteria and the targeting preferencesassociated with the bids. A match between such search criteria andtargeting preferences associated with a bid may indicate that the bid isrelevant and therefore may be included in an auction to determine thewinning bid. Bids that have targeting preferences that do not match thesearch criteria may be considered irrelevant (e.g., because they are nottargeted to the user's preferences or search criteria), and therefore,such bids may not be included in the auction. As described above, amatch may be determined by regular expressions or other pattern matchingtechniques in which, for example, a match may be determined to exist iftargeting preferences are identified in at least a portion of the searchcriteria, or vice versa.

At block 504, bids that are promoting the same product may beidentified. Such bids may be combined with one another to competeagainst other bids promoting different products, in one embodiment. Inone embodiment, bids may be combined based on a comparison of productinformation associated with the bids. Such product information mayinclude a description and/or content (e.g., an ad) associated with theproduct. A match between such product information among bids mayindicate that the bids are promoting the same product.

If it is determined that bids are promoting the same product, at block506, then collaboration rules or preferences associated with the bidsmay be analyzed to determine whether, or under which circumstances, bidsmay be combined with other bids, at block 508. Bids may be combinedaccording to such rules or preferences, in one embodiment. Bids that aredetermined to promote the same product may be combined such that asingle bid price associated with the bids may be generated, at block510. Various mathematical operations and/or techniques may be utilizedto combine bid prices, such as addition, averaging, weighted averaging,etc. The combined bids may be submitted for comparison to other bids inan auction to determine a winning bid, in one embodiment, at block 512.

If it is determined that multiple bids are not promoting the sameproduct, or collaboration rules prohibit the collaboration of bids, thenprocessing may proceed to block 512, where individual bids may besubmitted in an auction to determine a winning bid.

Returning to FIG. 4, a determination may be made as to whether theauction was won by the combined bid, at block 410. If the auction wasnot won, processing may end, in one embodiment. If the auction was won,one or more ads to display in the ad space may be determined, at block412. According to certain embodiments herein, the ad space in which thead may be displayed may be the most prominent location on a web page orother information resource, for example. Various approaches may be usedto determine which ad to present, for example, when combined bids eachhave different ads (e.g., content identified in the product informationassociated with the ad) but have the same description of the product.For example, if a bid was currently winning the ad space prior to beingcollaborated with other bids, then an ad associated with the bid thatwas winning the ad space may be shown in the ad space. Multiple ads,e.g., one associated with each bid that was combined, may be presentedin the ad space, in some embodiments. The one or more ads selected fordisplay may be shown in the ad space, at block 414.

Cost may be allocated among the multiple bidding entities promoting thesame product, at block 416. Various cost allocation techniques may beused, such as allocating costs proportional to the bid price submittedby each bidding entity, allocating an entire portion of the cost to aparticular bidding entity, e.g., the bidding entity that submitted thehighest bid price, allocating the cost evenly across each of thecollaborating bidding entities, etc.

FIG. 6 depicts a flow diagram of an example process 600 for implementingcollaborative bidding in real time, according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. Real-time collaborative bidding may include requesting bidsfrom one or more bidding entities based on receiving a user's request todisplay product ads. The example process may begin at block 602, wheresearch criteria for one or more product ads may be received from a userdevice. At block 604, a request for bids may be sent to one or morebidding entities, such as ad exchanges or bidding entity devices (e.g.,the third party devices 140) based on the search criteria received fromthe user device. In one embodiment, the search criteria may be includedin a request for a bid to, for example, inform a bidding entity aboutwhich products or services in which a user is interested.

Certain bidding entities may be identified for receiving a bid requestbased on the search criteria, in one embodiment. As a non-limitingexample, bidding entities that have previously submitted bids to displayads for certain products may be targeted for receiving bid requests whensearch criteria indicates that such products are desired by a user.

Bids from at least a portion of the bidding entities that received arequest for bids may be received, at block 606. As described above, thebids received from the bidding entities may include a bid price, one ormore targeting preferences, and product information. Bids that arepromoting the same product may be identified by comparing productinformation among the received bids, in one embodiment, at block 608. Amatch between such product information may indicate bids that arepromoting the same product. If multiple bids are promoting the sameproduct, at block 610, bid prices associated with these bids may becombined to generate a combined bid price, at block 612. The combinedbid price may be submitted for comparison, e.g., in an online auction,to determine a winning bid, at block 614. If multiple bids entities aredetermined to promote different products, at block 610, then eachindividual received bid may be submitted in an auction to determine awinning bid, at block 614.

While not shown in FIG. 6, certain embodiments associated with areal-time implementation of collaborative bidding may includeidentifying one or more rules associated with bids that are promotingthe same product and analyzing the rules to determine whether, oraccording to which circumstances or conditions, such bids may becombined.

In some embodiments, all or a portion of the functionality describedherein may be performed by one or more software programs and/or modules.For example, software, such as an operating system or softwareapplication, may configure itself without communicating with aconfiguration agent as described above.

The operations and processes described and shown above may be carriedout or performed in any suitable order as desired in variousimplementations. Additionally, in certain implementations, at least aportion of the operations may be carried out in parallel. Furthermore,in certain implementations, less than or more than the operationsdescribed above may be performed.

Certain aspects of the disclosure are described above with reference toblock and flow diagrams of systems, methods, apparatuses, and/orcomputer program products according to various implementations. It willbe understood that one or more blocks of the block diagrams and flowdiagrams, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and the flowdiagrams, respectively, can be implemented by computer-executable codeor program instructions. Likewise, some blocks of the block diagrams andflow diagrams may not necessarily need to be performed in the orderpresented, or may not necessarily need to be performed at all, accordingto some implementations.

These computer-executable code or program instructions may be loadedonto a special-purpose computer or other particular machine, aprocessor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce aparticular machine, such that the instructions that execute on thecomputer, processor, or other programmable data processing apparatuscreate means for implementing one or more functions specified in theflow diagram block or blocks. These computer program instructions mayalso be stored in a computer-readable storage media or memory that candirect a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus tofunction in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored inthe computer-readable storage media produce an article of manufactureincluding instruction means that implement one or more functionsspecified in the flow diagram block or blocks. As an example, certainimplementations may provide for a computer program product, comprising acomputer-readable storage medium having a computer-readable program codeor program instructions implemented therein, said computer-readableprogram code adapted to be executed to implement one or more functionsspecified in the flow diagram block or blocks. The computer programinstructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmabledata processing apparatus to cause a series of operational elements orsteps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus toproduce a computer-implemented process such that the instructions thatexecute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide elementsor steps for implementing the functions specified in the flow diagramblock or blocks.

Accordingly, blocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams supportcombinations of means for performing the specified functions,combinations of elements or steps for performing the specified functionsand program instruction means for performing the specified functions. Itwill also be understood that each block of the block diagrams and flowdiagrams, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and flowdiagrams, can be implemented by special-purpose, hardware-based computersystems that perform the specified functions, elements or steps, orcombinations of special-purpose hardware and computer instructions.

Conditional language, such as, among others, “can,” “could,” “might,” or“may,” unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understoodwithin the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certainimplementations could include, while other implementations do notinclude, certain features, elements, and/or operations. Thus, suchconditional language is not generally intended to imply that features,elements, and/or operations are in any way required for one or moreimplementations or that one or more implementations necessarily includelogic for deciding, with or without user input or prompting, whetherthese features, elements, and/or operations are included or are to beperformed in any particular implementation.

Many modifications and other implementations of the disclosure set forthherein will be apparent having the benefit of the teachings presented inthe foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Therefore, it isto be understood that the disclosure is not to be limited to thespecific implementations disclosed and that modifications and otherimplementations are intended to be included within the scope of theappended claims. Although specific terms are employed herein, they areused in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes oflimitation.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: generating, by one or morecomputer processors coupled to at least one memory, a bid request for acontent delivery slot; sending the bid request to a first computingdevice, a second computing device, and a third computing device;receiving a first bid request response from the first computing device,the first bid request response comprising a first bid amount and a firsttargeting criteria; receiving a second bid request response from thesecond computing device, the second bid request response comprising asecond bid amount, and a second targeting criteria; receiving a thirdbid request response from the third computing device, the third bidrequest response comprising a third bid amount and a third targetingcriteria; determining, using a first rule of a set of rules, that thefirst targeting criteria at least partially matches the second targetingcriteria; determining, using a second rule of a set of rules, that thesecond targeting criteria at least partially matches the third targetingcriteria, wherein the second rule is different from the first rule;determining search criteria comprising one or more keywords from a userdevice; determining that the one or more keywords satisfy the firsttargeting criteria; determining that the one or more keywords satisfythe second targeting criteria; determining that the first bid requestresponse, the second bid request response, and the third bid requestresponse each comprise a same product identifier; determining a combinedbid amount using a first bid amount of the first bid request response, asecond bid amount of the second bid request response, and a third bidamount of the third bid response request; and determining a winning bidamount for the content delivery slot, wherein the winning bid amount isthe combined bid amount.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:selecting content associated with the first bid request response and thesecond bid request response; and causing presentation of the content atthe user device.
 3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:determining that the first bid request response and the second bidrequest response comprise a same product identifier.
 4. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: generating, at the content delivery slot,scrolling functionality; wherein content is accessible in response to ascrolling input at the content delivery slot.
 5. The method of claim 1,further comprising: determining a first segment and a second segment ofthe content delivery slot; determining that the first bid amount isgreater than the second bid amount; determining that the first segmentis larger than the second segment; and causing first content associatedwith the first bid request response to be presented at the firstsegment, and second content associated with the second bid requestresponse to be presented at the second segment.
 6. The method of claim1, further comprising: determining a first segment and a second segmentof the content delivery slot; determining that the first bid amount isgreater than the second bid amount; determining that the first segmentis larger than the second segment; and causing first content associatedwith the first bid request response and second content associated withthe second bid request response to be presented at the first segment. 7.The method of claim 1, wherein determining the combined bid amount usingthe first bid amount of the first bid request response and the secondbid amount of the second bid request response comprises: determining asum, an average, or a weighted average of the first bid amount and thesecond bid amount.
 8. A device comprising: at least one memory thatstores computer-executable instructions; at least one processorconfigured to access the at least one memory and execute thecomputer-executable instructions to: generate a bid request for acontent delivery slot; send the bid request to a first computing device,a second computing device, and a third computing device; receive a firstbid request response from the first computing device, the first bidrequest response comprising a first bid amount and a first targetingcriteria; receive a second bid request response from the secondcomputing device, the second bid request response comprising a secondbid amount, and a second targeting criteria; receive a third bid requestresponse from the third computing device, the third bid request responsecomprising a third bid amount and a third targeting criteria; determine,using a first rule of a set of rules, that the first targeting criteriaat least partially matches the second targeting criteria; determine,using a second rule of a set of rules, that the second targetingcriteria at least partially matches the third targeting criteria,wherein the second rule is different from the first rule; determinesearch criteria comprising one or more keywords from a user device;determine that the one or more keywords satisfy the first targetingcriteria; determine that the one or more keywords satisfy the secondtargeting criteria; determine that the first bid request response, thesecond bid request response, and the third bid request response eachcomprise a same product identifier; determine a combined bid amountusing a first bid amount of the first bid request response, a second bidamount of the second bid request response, and a third bid amount of thethird bid response request; and determine a winning bid amount for thecontent delivery slot, wherein the winning bid amount is the combinedbid amount.
 9. The device of claim 8, wherein the at least one processoris further configured to access the at least one memory and execute thecomputer-executable instructions to: select content associated with thefirst bid request response and the second bid request response; andcause presentation of the content at the user device.
 10. The device ofclaim 8, wherein the at least one processor is further configured toaccess the at least one memory and execute the computer-executableinstructions to: determine that the first bid request response and thesecond bid request response comprise a same product identifier.
 11. Thedevice of claim 8, wherein the at least one processor is furtherconfigured to access the at least one memory and execute thecomputer-executable instructions to: generate, at the content deliveryslot, scrolling functionality; wherein content is accessible in responseto a scrolling input at the content delivery slot.
 12. The device ofclaim 8, wherein the at least one processor is further configured toaccess the at least one memory and execute the computer-executableinstructions to: determine a first segment and a second segment of thecontent delivery slot; determine that the first bid amount is greaterthan the second bid amount; determine that the first segment is largerthan the second segment; and cause first content associated with thefirst bid request response to be presented at the first segment, andsecond content associated with the second bid request response to bepresented at the second segment.
 13. The device of claim 8, wherein theat least one processor is further configured to access the at least onememory and execute the computer-executable instructions to: determine afirst segment and a second segment of the content delivery slot;determine that the first bid amount is greater than the second bidamount; determine that the first segment is larger than the secondsegment; and cause first content associated with the first bid requestresponse and second content associated with the second bid requestresponse to be presented at the first segment.
 14. The device of claim8, wherein determining the combined bid amount using the first bidamount of the first bid request response and the second bid amount ofthe second bid request response comprises: determining a sum, anaverage, or a weighted average of the first bid amount and the secondbid amount.
 15. One or more non-transitory computer-readable mediumcomprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by atleast one processor, execute a method comprising: generating, by one ormore computer processors coupled to at least one memory, a bid requestfor a content delivery slot; sending the bid request to a firstcomputing device, a second computing device, and a third computingdevice; receiving a first bid request response from the first computingdevice, the first bid request response comprising a first bid amount anda first targeting criteria; receiving a second bid request response fromthe second computing device, the second bid request response comprisinga second bid amount, and a second targeting criteria; receiving a thirdbid request response from the third computing device, the third bidrequest response comprising a third bid amount and a third targetingcriteria; determining, using a first rule of a set of rules, that thefirst targeting criteria at least partially matches the second targetingcriteria; determining, using a second rule of a set of rules, that thesecond targeting criteria at least partially matches the third targetingcriteria, wherein the second rule is different from the first rule;determining search criteria comprising one or more keywords from a userdevice; determining that the one or more keywords satisfy the firsttargeting criteria; determining that the one or more keywords satisfythe second targeting criteria; determining that the first bid requestresponse, the second bid request response, and the third bid requestresponse each comprise a same product identifier; determining a combinedbid amount using a first bid amount of the first bid request response, asecond bid amount of the second bid request response, and a third bidamount of the third bid response request; and determining a winning bidamount for the content delivery slot, wherein the winning bid amount isthe combined bid amount.
 16. The one or more non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the method furthercomprises: selecting content associated with the first bid requestresponse and the second bid request response; and causing presentationof the content at the user device.
 17. The one or more non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the method furthercomprises: determining that the first bid request response and thesecond bid request response comprise a same product identifier.
 18. Theone or more non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, whereinthe method further comprises: generating, at the content delivery slot,scrolling functionality; wherein content is accessible in response to ascrolling input at the content delivery slot.
 19. The one or morenon-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the methodfurther comprises: determining a first segment and a second segment ofthe content delivery slot; determining that the first bid amount isgreater than the second bid amount; determining that the first segmentis larger than the second segment; and causing first content associatedwith the first bid request response to be presented at the firstsegment, and second content associated with the second bid requestresponse to be presented at the second segment.
 20. The one or morenon-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the methodfurther comprises: determining a first segment and a second segment ofthe content delivery slot; determining that the first bid amount isgreater than the second bid amount; determining that the first segmentis larger than the second segment; and causing first content associatedwith the first bid request response and second content associated withthe second bid request response to be presented at the first segment.